03-08-10 Did You Write?
It is that time of the week again. the time where I post a note in hopes that it prods you into writing. You see the note coming and you get off your duff and open your present work in process, or start something new. Any amount of work added to the project is acceptable. It does not even have to be your project.
I list the things that can be writing. be it new writing, editing even if it is someone else's work, poetry, critiquing, blogging, writing assignments, technical writing, world or character creation, even long winded E-mails about writing or story. it really comes down to what you personally decide will be writing. I have not heard any complaints about anything suggested as writing, or how much one has written. the hope is that you develop the habit of opening the project at hand and doing something each week. It would be better to work hours every day, but with life and slackers, just one time during the week will pass for us.
I have written. Last week, I zapped a whole section of a story I have in progress. I have now written fresh, and pulled in pieces of other work to replace the work I removed. it was a great improvement.
I am not sure exactly how much new I added. It could be just 600 words but I forgot to record word counts before I added something or removed it. As it is now, the story stands at page 11 with 6320 words. That will be what next week's writing will be measured by. My writing partners and I have exchanged several thousand words in working out details of the story. Little things like how someone will dress has expended a lot of words. We are character and world creating as I write and it is hard to write a detail when you have not given it a thought, and it effects later stories. It is a fun process. Over the past few weeks, I have written scenes to show my image of what someone or something looked like and my writing partners presented their suggestions based on the scenes. This week, I pulled some of those scenes into the story I am working on, which has thrown off the page and word count.
I have 40 story ideas in my compost pile, including what I post tonight. I got an idea ahead earlier in the week, then had a very late evening and did not have time to write that nights presentation, so I am still just up to date.
It is fun to have ideas flow like they do. I have suggested many times, if you get an idea, write it down. if it is on a piece of paper or in a "storage file." write down just enough to remind you of what it is. You can then forget it for a while. for me, it is usually about a paragraph, may be two for a detailed idea. When the time comes, sit down and expand it a bit more. tell what the story is about, You don't actually tell the story, just what it is about. For me, it is rare that a story idea gets onto four pages. With it expanded out like that, one can forget it completely, to dig it out when there is a need for something to write.
The key I have found, is that a story that draws completely on your creative mind, will become quite after you write what the story is about. Only a few hang on after that.
Writing what the story is about, as I suggested, also acts like an outline. it is a guide to what will happen in the story. You have a beginning, middle and end, and can note plot twists. it acts like an outline. If one chooses to go with a change in plot in your work in progress, it takes just a little time to change the quick presentation and see how the plot change effects the whole story. It is also easy to rewrite your presentation since it is short.
Even if you write something different, your quick presentation will have the key points you will want to hit. that happened when I converted my original 2 page waxy birth story into a 75 page story. the short piece had the highlights I was after. I went all over the place between the landmarks, but I did get to them eventually, creating a better piece. I know where I am going, and know how to get there, but have enough freedom to let the characters and scenery do their work.
I have to set my mind to get my woodworking ready for the art show. I am running into the problem where Other activities get into the way. I do my woodworking at my Mom's house on the weekends. We have done a whole lot of running around the past several weeks, killing my woodworking.
I withdrew my work from the Antique store. I have to go over each piece, examining it for damage and to try to improve the finish on them.
I was surprised as to how much stuff I actually had on display there. It turned out to be a whole bin of work. I need to swap out some pieces, but that is likely the amount of wood turnings I will have in my display in the art show at the end of the month. the rest of the display will be carvings.
One of my favorite types of story ideas, is to take something that is utterly silly, especially commercials, and figure out how to make it logical, normal, spin a story around it. I might see something a few dozen times before it locks into my mind as to how to use it.
Several years ago, one of the car companies advertized their START BUTTON. One way they did it was to have someone going through great effort, either diving deep under the sea, or climbing an ice cliff. they get into a special place, and there is a button. they push the button, then they are seated in a car, then they are accelerating down the road. while the commercials were popular, I turned that into a story idea. it was a little trap THEY had set. They have hidden the buttons in inaccessible places, then let it be known they existed.
What happens is that when a person hits the button, it teleports them to successive places. When the car accelerates, it is teleported to impact on a moon or on another planet. I think I had it as a weapon in a war. It kept the really adventurous genes in the population at a low level also.
As to the question of the week, I can honestly say
YES, I DID WRITE
DID YOU WRITE?
Monday, March 8, 2010
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Week 530 WoodWorking
year 10, Week 8, Day Two (week 530)
(January 17, 2000 was my first carving day.)
03-07-10 Sunday
47 degrees in morning, 65 when I arrived at Mom's house at 10, 72 as the high. Blue skies until after noon when some dark puffs of clouds started slipping in from the west. It was not until around three that the clouds actually got in the way of the sun a few times. Light breeze, just heavy enough to allow fine saw dust to disappear. Sitting in the sun tended to be the right temperature. enough to warm you up, but not enough to make you feel hot.
This weather report was brought to you by the City Of Pompano Beach Department of Tourism.
I took ill Tuesday and did not want to be out in the cold of my porch to do sanding, so I am already a week behind on that preparation for the art show. By Thursday, the illness was almost gone. it was like a sinus thing, eyes acting up, runny nose. it was a very slight tickle Saturday and only a slight chest tickle is left on Sunday.
FRIDAY
Went to the antique shop to pick up my stuff for the show. I was surprised at how much stuff I had. they were kind of spread out. I ended up with a whole bin worth of stuff. With the swapping of a few items, this is all the turnings I need to bring to the art show.
While there, I took pictures of a few items in the store. I found there was these cats carved out of posts. The carving is really just light shaping. the painting is everything. I thought I would use them for Christmas ornaments next year. They would be easy to make. I would depend more on the carving than on the painting.
Post Cats to copy for ornaments
He sells costume jewelry there. the sales from them goes to a wine and cheese tasting party he has each month. I saw this pin and just had to have it. I have no idea why, but it looked like something I have to have so I purchased it for four bucks.
horn or winged pin I picked up
I stopped at a thrift store and picked up three books. The autobiography of Eddy Rickenbacker, who was the first American Ace in world war one. THE BASIC EVERYDAY ENCYCLOPEDIA (single book of highlights. and TIME LIFE BOOKS HOW THINGS WORK IN OUR HOME And What to do when they don't.
SATURDAY
We went yard sailing, hitting like eight yard sales, which included two rummage sales, I guess that is what you can call sales in condominiums. I picked up three more books. THE BEST OF HENNY YOUNGMAN, then RADIO SHACK BASIC ELECTRONICS, and GREAT 2x4 ACCESSORIES FOR YOUR HOME which is simple shelving, hat racks, decorations one can make.
At another yard sale, I picked up a salad bowl and two figurines (a whole seventy five cents for all three. I saw this stylized lion figurine and decided I had to have it. I was trying to find a dollar's worth of stuff. I got an elephant bank. Those two might become GO BY's where I can go by their design for one of my carvings.
Lion and elephant figurines.
I walked out back to consider wood working, digging out some of my stuff, and then decided it was not going to happen, especially when I found that I forgot the one thing I really wanted to work on.
SUNDAY
Woodworking!!!!
I brought the Sea Urchin shells with me, which was what I really wanted to work with yesterday. the beast in the back yard is acting so close to being a cat that I have to remind myself to pay attention to his moods.
I followed my decision to work on the sea urchin shells and to use the lathe. I needed to make finials for the shells to make them Christmas Ornaments. I had two I had added finials to and they got broke. I broke them apart to get the finials, rather than taking the time to figure out a way to repair or modify them for use. I needed the shells to measure what I needed for the mountings.
I took a piece of Black Walnut and made a finial, going really thin and long. I did not quite have the guts to go as thin as I should have. I used a really simple design too. I tend to make things able to take a little abuse as I am closer to Godzilla when it comes to handling things. Delicate does not survive long around me.
After the finial, I took another piece of Black Walnut and made little nobs for the top of the ornaments for the eye hook to hang them.
I decided to take some tissue paper and work it into the bodies of the ornaments to give them a little more support. When I glued the finials in place, I let the glue go onto the paper to help hold them in place. I will know later in the week as to how well I did. I will take them out, touch up a little, then give them good coats of varnish to finish them up.
I figured something out on these shells. Experience is how you learn what you did wrong. You do a project and then figure out how to do it right next time.
With the Sea urchin Shells, I needed to give them a good coat of varnish. the idea is to make them easier to clean when you mess up. One shell got all dirty from my messing with it. I will paint it with white spray paint to save it.
Sea Urchin Ornaments with the finials.
The plate I was sanding last week, needed more sanding. I did some hand sanding, then got an idea. I had the lathe out so I remounted it onto the lathe.
I am developing a mounting system for making plates. I found it works pretty good for this started plate. I have two wood face plates I made that fits into the bottom and base of the plate. when I make a plate. I use these face plates for measuring. One is held in the chuck, while the other is held in place with the tail stock. I cut into the wood next to the tail stock, then cut in the base, shaping and flattening it. I cut the back of the rim to shape. I put double sided tape on the tail stock face plate, then put it back into place and use the tail stock to clamp it in place. I run the lathe to get it settled into place.
I can now remove the plate, turn it around and get to work on the inside of the platter. this time the face plate measures the bottom of the platter where the food will be. Many times I will leave it in place until I have the rim pretty good, then remove the face plate and cut the center down to the depth it needs to be.
What I did with the platter I am sanding, was I mounted it as close to center as I could. it was not really center and I think the platter warped slightly over the years. I spun it slowly and ran sand paper on the rim and in the center until it was quite acceptable. I double sided taped the face plate onto my work surface and made sure it was stuck well, then flipped the platter around, did some sanding on the rim, then removed the face plate to work the back.
In the process, I went so far as to use my bowl gouge to fix an edge of the center a little.
The platter wobbled as it spun around, but I was able to get it fixed up pretty good.
I have some spots that still need some hand sanding with course grit, then I can turn my attention to sanding it with finer grits until it is ready to varnish. I saved myself a lot of effort and proved my mounting system a bit more.
I finished my day, packing stuff up and looking at books, talking about projects and stuff.
platter I am refinishing. Note the light stuff in the knot. that is filler. I will paint it to blend when I get the sanding the way I want it.
This week, I need to start sorting out my work, examining the finish, and re-finishing what is not up to my latest skills. Some will need to be sanded down to the wood and refinished, while others might only need fresh varnish to bring them to standard. There are pieces that I know will be in the show, and then there are pieces I need to compare to see what gets selected. I do want some cheap stuff, and some expensive stuff. A good mixture.
I need to dig out my carvings and see what they need to become finished. I have my small stuff at home, and need to look at the big carvings at Mom's house too.
I have a number of pieces in process and they need to be finished too. Some can be sanded until I get to Mom's house again to do more work.
I, of course, have some projects that must be done before the show. They do have priority.
I will see what I actually do next weekend.
(January 17, 2000 was my first carving day.)
03-07-10 Sunday
47 degrees in morning, 65 when I arrived at Mom's house at 10, 72 as the high. Blue skies until after noon when some dark puffs of clouds started slipping in from the west. It was not until around three that the clouds actually got in the way of the sun a few times. Light breeze, just heavy enough to allow fine saw dust to disappear. Sitting in the sun tended to be the right temperature. enough to warm you up, but not enough to make you feel hot.
This weather report was brought to you by the City Of Pompano Beach Department of Tourism.
I took ill Tuesday and did not want to be out in the cold of my porch to do sanding, so I am already a week behind on that preparation for the art show. By Thursday, the illness was almost gone. it was like a sinus thing, eyes acting up, runny nose. it was a very slight tickle Saturday and only a slight chest tickle is left on Sunday.
FRIDAY
Went to the antique shop to pick up my stuff for the show. I was surprised at how much stuff I had. they were kind of spread out. I ended up with a whole bin worth of stuff. With the swapping of a few items, this is all the turnings I need to bring to the art show.
While there, I took pictures of a few items in the store. I found there was these cats carved out of posts. The carving is really just light shaping. the painting is everything. I thought I would use them for Christmas ornaments next year. They would be easy to make. I would depend more on the carving than on the painting.
Post Cats to copy for ornaments
He sells costume jewelry there. the sales from them goes to a wine and cheese tasting party he has each month. I saw this pin and just had to have it. I have no idea why, but it looked like something I have to have so I purchased it for four bucks.
horn or winged pin I picked up
I stopped at a thrift store and picked up three books. The autobiography of Eddy Rickenbacker, who was the first American Ace in world war one. THE BASIC EVERYDAY ENCYCLOPEDIA (single book of highlights. and TIME LIFE BOOKS HOW THINGS WORK IN OUR HOME And What to do when they don't.
SATURDAY
We went yard sailing, hitting like eight yard sales, which included two rummage sales, I guess that is what you can call sales in condominiums. I picked up three more books. THE BEST OF HENNY YOUNGMAN, then RADIO SHACK BASIC ELECTRONICS, and GREAT 2x4 ACCESSORIES FOR YOUR HOME which is simple shelving, hat racks, decorations one can make.
At another yard sale, I picked up a salad bowl and two figurines (a whole seventy five cents for all three. I saw this stylized lion figurine and decided I had to have it. I was trying to find a dollar's worth of stuff. I got an elephant bank. Those two might become GO BY's where I can go by their design for one of my carvings.
Lion and elephant figurines.
I walked out back to consider wood working, digging out some of my stuff, and then decided it was not going to happen, especially when I found that I forgot the one thing I really wanted to work on.
SUNDAY
Woodworking!!!!
I brought the Sea Urchin shells with me, which was what I really wanted to work with yesterday. the beast in the back yard is acting so close to being a cat that I have to remind myself to pay attention to his moods.
I followed my decision to work on the sea urchin shells and to use the lathe. I needed to make finials for the shells to make them Christmas Ornaments. I had two I had added finials to and they got broke. I broke them apart to get the finials, rather than taking the time to figure out a way to repair or modify them for use. I needed the shells to measure what I needed for the mountings.
I took a piece of Black Walnut and made a finial, going really thin and long. I did not quite have the guts to go as thin as I should have. I used a really simple design too. I tend to make things able to take a little abuse as I am closer to Godzilla when it comes to handling things. Delicate does not survive long around me.
After the finial, I took another piece of Black Walnut and made little nobs for the top of the ornaments for the eye hook to hang them.
I decided to take some tissue paper and work it into the bodies of the ornaments to give them a little more support. When I glued the finials in place, I let the glue go onto the paper to help hold them in place. I will know later in the week as to how well I did. I will take them out, touch up a little, then give them good coats of varnish to finish them up.
I figured something out on these shells. Experience is how you learn what you did wrong. You do a project and then figure out how to do it right next time.
With the Sea urchin Shells, I needed to give them a good coat of varnish. the idea is to make them easier to clean when you mess up. One shell got all dirty from my messing with it. I will paint it with white spray paint to save it.
Sea Urchin Ornaments with the finials.
The plate I was sanding last week, needed more sanding. I did some hand sanding, then got an idea. I had the lathe out so I remounted it onto the lathe.
I am developing a mounting system for making plates. I found it works pretty good for this started plate. I have two wood face plates I made that fits into the bottom and base of the plate. when I make a plate. I use these face plates for measuring. One is held in the chuck, while the other is held in place with the tail stock. I cut into the wood next to the tail stock, then cut in the base, shaping and flattening it. I cut the back of the rim to shape. I put double sided tape on the tail stock face plate, then put it back into place and use the tail stock to clamp it in place. I run the lathe to get it settled into place.
I can now remove the plate, turn it around and get to work on the inside of the platter. this time the face plate measures the bottom of the platter where the food will be. Many times I will leave it in place until I have the rim pretty good, then remove the face plate and cut the center down to the depth it needs to be.
What I did with the platter I am sanding, was I mounted it as close to center as I could. it was not really center and I think the platter warped slightly over the years. I spun it slowly and ran sand paper on the rim and in the center until it was quite acceptable. I double sided taped the face plate onto my work surface and made sure it was stuck well, then flipped the platter around, did some sanding on the rim, then removed the face plate to work the back.
In the process, I went so far as to use my bowl gouge to fix an edge of the center a little.
The platter wobbled as it spun around, but I was able to get it fixed up pretty good.
I have some spots that still need some hand sanding with course grit, then I can turn my attention to sanding it with finer grits until it is ready to varnish. I saved myself a lot of effort and proved my mounting system a bit more.
I finished my day, packing stuff up and looking at books, talking about projects and stuff.
platter I am refinishing. Note the light stuff in the knot. that is filler. I will paint it to blend when I get the sanding the way I want it.
This week, I need to start sorting out my work, examining the finish, and re-finishing what is not up to my latest skills. Some will need to be sanded down to the wood and refinished, while others might only need fresh varnish to bring them to standard. There are pieces that I know will be in the show, and then there are pieces I need to compare to see what gets selected. I do want some cheap stuff, and some expensive stuff. A good mixture.
I need to dig out my carvings and see what they need to become finished. I have my small stuff at home, and need to look at the big carvings at Mom's house too.
I have a number of pieces in process and they need to be finished too. Some can be sanded until I get to Mom's house again to do more work.
I, of course, have some projects that must be done before the show. They do have priority.
I will see what I actually do next weekend.
Monday, March 1, 2010
Did You Write? 03-01-10
Did You Write? 03-01-10
Today is a new month, a new week, and a new day. It is also time to announce to the whole world as to whether you were able to keep up with our attempt to write some time during this week or you let life get in the way to your reach for greatness.
How much that is written, and what is written is unimportant. It is that you actually did write, is all we are counting.
I list what can be writing, each week. They are not the whole list, just suggestions of what you can call writing. It is really up to you as to what is writing. We are not picky.
All new writing, editing even if it is someone else's work, poetry, blogging, article writing, writing assignments, character and world creation, critiquing, just to name a few suggestions. The list can go on and on. Develop the habit of writing each week and one will end up with results over time.
As for me, Yes, I can say I wrote. I have expended a lot of words in E-mail with my writing partners as they guided me through the creation of some characters and the world I am writing right now. Our images of the place did not align and now I may have something we can all accept.
Because of this, I made a copy of the work in progress, then zapped everything that involved that world and have started over. I like it better now. I will pull in some of what I had, a bit later, but for now I am writing this section of the story fresh.
In this section of rewrite, I have added two pages at 946 words. This takes this story from 7186 words to 4219 words. Of course, everything before this will have to be rewritten too, but not now.
I also worked on a different bit of the story, mostly just scene development, and added 246 words to that piece. That will be pulled in, in whole a bit later too. I have some rewriting on that also because of discussions with my writing partners.
On the writing idea front, I had a pretty good month. I have 43 story ideas in my compost pile, including what I am posting tonight. I am using the ideas I came up with over the past few weeks.
During last month, I posted 28 story ideas, at 26,834 words, and 45 pages. Not bad for pure drivel. It proves that ideas are a dime a dozen...
This weekend, I ran across a yard sale where a guy was retiring and selling his tools. I spent a bunch of money and came home with loads of tools. I am trying to reduce what I have in my house, but instead, every time I turn around, I am getting more stuff. They are wonderful things, things I have always wanted, but have lived and could continue to live without them.
My brother took a bunch of stuff too. I had the urge to stop on the way home, a fourth visit, but forced myself to keep going.
I am now concentrating on getting ready for an art show I will be part of. I need to put my full attention to getting my work up to a higher level of finish. Over the years, I have had bouts of laziness when it comes to sanding and varnishing my woodworking, where one can see the scratches and tool marks in the surface. An example, is a platter I ran across. It has deep sandpaper scratches, built up varnish blobs, and looks like it was a mistake. I started sanding it this weekend and am making headway of making it presentable. My laziness back then is causing me a whole lot of work now. I need to look over every piece of work I have and do a similar attention to detail. My worst pieces will get the most attention so the average will be better.
Taking the above and turning it into a story idea,
they are in the process of abandoning the space station. It has serious problems because they lost a trade route and they can no longer support this station. People remove the stuff from their homes, leaving the place clean. The station might be put back to use some other time so they are leaving it nice for the next people.
The big thing is that there is a lot of stuff that people just do not feel like moving. People with money, and possibly not access to certain types of personal items, are buying stuff from the others, upgrading their holdings.
He does not have a lot of money, but he knows a deal when he sees it. People put their stuff out to sale and he buys it. His problem is that he has a whole load of stuff himself so he does not need all of this. He cannot let this stuff get dumped so he picks out the best he can afford at any one time and gets them. He has tools to work, books, furniture, toys. While he is accumulating this stuff, he is sorting his stuff for his turn to leave, which will be near the end of the evacuation
As to the question of the day
YES I DID WRITE
DID YOU WRITE?
Today is a new month, a new week, and a new day. It is also time to announce to the whole world as to whether you were able to keep up with our attempt to write some time during this week or you let life get in the way to your reach for greatness.
How much that is written, and what is written is unimportant. It is that you actually did write, is all we are counting.
I list what can be writing, each week. They are not the whole list, just suggestions of what you can call writing. It is really up to you as to what is writing. We are not picky.
All new writing, editing even if it is someone else's work, poetry, blogging, article writing, writing assignments, character and world creation, critiquing, just to name a few suggestions. The list can go on and on. Develop the habit of writing each week and one will end up with results over time.
As for me, Yes, I can say I wrote. I have expended a lot of words in E-mail with my writing partners as they guided me through the creation of some characters and the world I am writing right now. Our images of the place did not align and now I may have something we can all accept.
Because of this, I made a copy of the work in progress, then zapped everything that involved that world and have started over. I like it better now. I will pull in some of what I had, a bit later, but for now I am writing this section of the story fresh.
In this section of rewrite, I have added two pages at 946 words. This takes this story from 7186 words to 4219 words. Of course, everything before this will have to be rewritten too, but not now.
I also worked on a different bit of the story, mostly just scene development, and added 246 words to that piece. That will be pulled in, in whole a bit later too. I have some rewriting on that also because of discussions with my writing partners.
On the writing idea front, I had a pretty good month. I have 43 story ideas in my compost pile, including what I am posting tonight. I am using the ideas I came up with over the past few weeks.
During last month, I posted 28 story ideas, at 26,834 words, and 45 pages. Not bad for pure drivel. It proves that ideas are a dime a dozen...
This weekend, I ran across a yard sale where a guy was retiring and selling his tools. I spent a bunch of money and came home with loads of tools. I am trying to reduce what I have in my house, but instead, every time I turn around, I am getting more stuff. They are wonderful things, things I have always wanted, but have lived and could continue to live without them.
My brother took a bunch of stuff too. I had the urge to stop on the way home, a fourth visit, but forced myself to keep going.
I am now concentrating on getting ready for an art show I will be part of. I need to put my full attention to getting my work up to a higher level of finish. Over the years, I have had bouts of laziness when it comes to sanding and varnishing my woodworking, where one can see the scratches and tool marks in the surface. An example, is a platter I ran across. It has deep sandpaper scratches, built up varnish blobs, and looks like it was a mistake. I started sanding it this weekend and am making headway of making it presentable. My laziness back then is causing me a whole lot of work now. I need to look over every piece of work I have and do a similar attention to detail. My worst pieces will get the most attention so the average will be better.
Taking the above and turning it into a story idea,
they are in the process of abandoning the space station. It has serious problems because they lost a trade route and they can no longer support this station. People remove the stuff from their homes, leaving the place clean. The station might be put back to use some other time so they are leaving it nice for the next people.
The big thing is that there is a lot of stuff that people just do not feel like moving. People with money, and possibly not access to certain types of personal items, are buying stuff from the others, upgrading their holdings.
He does not have a lot of money, but he knows a deal when he sees it. People put their stuff out to sale and he buys it. His problem is that he has a whole load of stuff himself so he does not need all of this. He cannot let this stuff get dumped so he picks out the best he can afford at any one time and gets them. He has tools to work, books, furniture, toys. While he is accumulating this stuff, he is sorting his stuff for his turn to leave, which will be near the end of the evacuation
As to the question of the day
YES I DID WRITE
DID YOU WRITE?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)